Feature
Of 716 women candidates 100 declared criminal cases against themselves
New Delhi: Of the 716 women candidates analysed in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, 100 (15 per cent) have declared criminal cases against themselves, while 78 (11 per cent) have declared serious criminal cases against their names, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
Among the major parties, 14 (26 per cent) out of 54 women candidates are from the Congress, 18 (34 per cent) out of 53 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), 2 (8 per cent) out of 24 women from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), six (26 per cent) out of 23 fielded by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and 22 (10 per cent) out of 222 Independent women candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.
While 10 (19 per cent) out of 54 women candidates from the Congress, 13 (25 per cent) out of 53 from the BJP, 2 (8 per cent) out of 24 from the BSP, 4 (17 per cent) out of 23 fielded by the TMC and 21 (10 per cent) out of 222 Independent have declared serious criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.
The National Election Watch and the ADR have analysed the affidavits of 716 out of 724 women candidates contesting in the Lok Sabha 2019 elections.
Of the 716 women candidates, 94 participated in the first phase of the elections, 124 in the second phase, 142 in the third, 96 in the fourth, 80 in the fifth and 84 in the sixth phase. However, 96 women candidates, who have declared criminal cases against themselves, are participating in the seventh phase of the elections.
The election watchdog’s report said that 78 (11 per cent) women candidates have declared serious criminal cases including cases related to rape, murder, attempt to murder, crimes against women etc in the Lok Sabha elections, 2019. The number of such women candidates was 51 (8 per cent) in the Lok Sabha elections, 2014, the ADR said.
15 percent women candidates declare criminal cases in Lok Sabha elections:
Two women candidates have declared convicted cases against themselves, four with cases related to murder, 16 with cases of attempt to murder, 14 with crimes against women such as causing miscarriage without woman’s consent while seven with cases related to hate speech.
Of the 716 women candidates analysed, the ADR said, 255 (36 per cent) are crorepatis.
A total of 44 (82 per cent) out of 54 fielded by the Congress, 44 (83 per cent) out of 53 from the BJP, 15 (65 per cent) out of 23 from the TMC, nine (38 per cent) out of 24 from the BSP, and 43 (19 per cent) out of 222 Independent women candidates have declared assets worth more than Rs 1 crore.
Among the major parties, the average assets per candidate for 54 Congress women candidates is Rs 18.84 crore, 53 BJP women candidates have average assets of Rs 22.09 crore, 24 BSP women candidates have average assets worth Rs 3.03 crore, 23 TMC women candidates have average assets worth Rs 2.67 crore, 10 CPI(M) women candidates have average assets worth Rs 1.33 crore, six Samajwadi Party women candidates have average assets worth Rs 39.85 crore, average assets of three AAP candidates are Rs 2.92 crore and 222 Independent women candidates have average assets of Rs. 1.63 crore.
The BJP’s Hema Malini (with Rs 250 crore) from Mathura constituency in Uttar Pradesh is among the three richest women candidates contesting in the elections followed by Telugu Desam Party’s D.A. Sathya Prabha (with Rs 220 crore) from Andhra Pradesh’s Rajampet constituency and Shiromani Akali Dal’s Harsimrat Kaur Badal (with Rs 217 crore) from Punjab’s Bathinda.
The State Scores Extra High on Gaming-Friendly Industry Index
Meghalaya scored 92.85 out of 100 possible points in a Gaming Industry Index and proved to be India’s most gaming-friendly state following its recent profound legislation changes over the field allowing land-based and online gaming, including games of chance, under a licensing regime.
The index by the UK India Business Council (UKIBC) uses a scale of 0 to 100 to measure the level of legalisation on gambling and betting achieved by a state based on the scores over a set of seven different games – lottery, horse racing, betting on sports, poker, rummy, casino and fantasy sports
Starting from February last year, Meghalaya became the third state in India’s northeast to legalise gambling and betting after Sikkim and Nagaland. After consultations with the UKIBC, the state proceeded with the adoption of the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Act, 2021 and the nullification of the Meghalaya Prevention of Gambling Act, 1970. Subsequently in December, the Meghalaya Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021 were notified and came into force.
All for the Tourists
The move to legalise and license various forms of offline and online betting and gambling in Meghalaya is aimed at boosting tourism and creating jobs, and altogether raising taxation revenues for the northeastern state. At the same time, the opportunities to bet and gamble legally will be reserved only for tourists and visitors.
“We came out with a Gaming Act and subsequently framed the Regulation of Gaming Rules, 2021. The government will accordingly issue licenses to operate games of skill and chance, both online and offline,” said James P. K. Sangma, Meghalaya State Law and Taxation Minister speaking in the capital city of Shillong. “But the legalized gambling and gaming will only be for tourists and not residents of Meghalaya,” he continued.
To be allowed to play, tourists and people visiting the state for work or business purposes will have to prove their non-resident status by presenting appropriate documents, in a process similar to a bank KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure.
Meghalaya Reaches Out to a Vast Market
With 140 millions of people in India estimated to bet regularly on sports, and a total of 370 million desi bettors around prominent sporting events, as per data from one of the latest reports by Esse N Videri, Meghalaya is set to reach out and take a piece of a vast market.
Estimates on the financial value of India’s sports betting market, combined across all types of offline channels and online sports and cricket predictions and betting platforms, speak about amounts between $130 and $150 billion (roughly between ₹9.7 and ₹11.5 lakh crore).
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Delhi are shown to deliver the highest number of bettors and Meghalaya can count on substantial tourists flow from their betting circles. The sports betting communities of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are also not to be underestimated.
Among the sports, cricket is most popular, registering 68 percent of the total bet count analyzed by Esse N Videri. Football takes second position with 11 percent of the bets, followed by betting on FIFA at 7 percent and on eCricket at 5 percent. The last position in the Top 5 of popular sports for betting in India is taken by tennis with 3 percent of the bet count.
Local Citizens will Still have Their Teer Betting
Meghalaya residents will still be permitted to participate in teer betting over arrow-shooting results. Teer is a traditional method of gambling, somewhat similar to a lottery draw, and held under the rules of the Meghalaya Regulation of the Game of Arrow Shooting and the Sale of Teer Tickets Act, 2018.
Teer includes bettors wagering on the number of arrows that reach the target which is placed about 50 meters away from a team of 20 archers positioned in a semicircle.
The archers shoot volleys of arrows at the target for ten minutes, and players place their bets choosing a number between 0 and 99 trying to guess the last two digits of the number of arrows that successfully pierce the target.
If, for example, the number of hits is 256, anyone who has bet on 56 wins an amount eight times bigger than their wager.
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